Words of Our Own

January 09, 2008

"Detroit" was conceived 10 years ago after a very interesting conversation with Harriet Saperstein about the city of Detroit. After she left my house, the poem came to me as a whisper. She devoted 35 years of work to the architectural improvement of the city, and I was surprised and also very challenged about what my contribution would be in the coming years. At that time, I was not really sure how long I would stay, and my concern was to make a difference in my time here, that I would be able to develop as a person but also give back to the community. —Mariela Griffor